Alienware M11x: Portable gaming power

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A while ago I mentioned that I was looking for a new laptop, and while the hunt is still on (mainly because I’m quite happy to run my current laptop into the ground), I do have my eye on one little gem.

If you’re a gamer, Alienware is the de facto company for computers, and I am pretty much in love with the M11x that they released earlier this year.

I had a brief look at the system, which they call “the most powerful 11″ gaming laptop in the universe,” and it’s instantly impressive, like few other systems on the market today.

In terms of size and weight, the M11x is not a beefy system, but it is respectably sturdy, coming in at around 4.5 pounds with a height of 1.29 inches. As the tagline suggests, the base system is also packed with a fair bit of power for a system this size, including a WLED High?Definition 720P screen, a 1GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 335M graphics card, and an Intel Core2 Duo SU7300 processor. You can also upgrade the processor, hard drive, and RAM, but of course that will add some weight to your system.

Testing the laptop out, I only had a few minutes to play around, but the gaming experience was sharp, with quick response times, and excellent graphics.

I was also impressed with Alienware’s special software which lets you change the colours of the M11x’s glowing accents. That software lets you either change all the accents to one colour, or you can set each of the six zones to be a different colour, which is particularly helpful for gamers who want to be able to find certain sets of keys quickly.

The laptop also has built-in options to help save battery power while you’re on the go. The M11x is also obviously small enough to take anywhere, without being ridiculously heavy, and it’s powerful enough to play games or, if it strikes your fancy, run just about any work-related programs you might have.

And I’m a big fan of the fact that the system comes with a 500 Gb hard drive, or you can upgrade it to a 256 Gb solid state drive for an extra $500. That’s a big jump in price, but with that upgrade you’ll also notice a big difference in the system’s weight, speed, and maybe best of all, temperature.

In Canada the base system retails for $949 from Dell’s website, or you can max out the hardware options for around $2,300.

There are a lot of great laptops out there today, but I’ll go out on a limb and say that, for the size especially, this is a powerful system for the portably conscious.

And, hey, stay tuned to the site in July if you like technology and gadgets. I’m going to be featuring reviews of a number of goodies throughout the month.